Vivid Diary December 2004

I was born on the 9th April, on the ''Great Friday'' before Easter thanks to my daddy who really hurried the doctors to deliver me before 12. I'd like to mention that I proved that sometimes dreams come true. My parent's very good friend Adriana had a dream that I would be born on that day. Adriana, what is your next prediction?

It took me a while to decide that I should come out to see the real world. I was one week late. I spent my first Easter in hospital and had lunch with my parents and my granny Ann who came from the States to help mommy take good care of me.

I've met my grandmother and all of my mother's side of the family. It's been fun because everyone wanted to hold me. I don't think that I spent more than five minutes by myself in the first three months. Maybe I've gotten a little spoiled, but I don't see how. I deserve it. I can tell by the way that my parents look at me. From the looks that they give me I have no doubt that I'm so sweet I'd melt if I were caught in the rain. I can see in my parents' eyes that I only have to put my finger in their morning coffee to sweeten it.

With this kind of leverage, training my parents has gone fairly well. They can now tell when I'm hungry, or need a diaper change, or if I'm just plain bored. When I'm bored I blow bubbles, and they know that they have a few minutes to fix things before they get ugly. Now that I've moved to Germany, the line of people that want to hold me has decreased significantly. Where did they all go?

Poor mommy is busy buying cloths all the time. (She thinks that they're shrinking). Two weeks ago we saw a newborn across the hall. Mommy is convinced that I was never that small.

My new hobby is looking into the mirror. No matter how upset I am, that always makes me happy. There's another baby on the other side of the mirror, and she smiles at me every time I smile at her.

I'm confused about my name! Mommy calls both me and daddy Puiu, and daddy does the same. I don't need to tell you how confusing things get around the house when we're all going by the same name!

There are so many things that I'd like to mention but I'm getting a little tired and I really need to take a nap. Besides that, this week I'll have a very busy schedule. I need to meet my dad's family, play with Rebecca (even if she steals all the toys from me), keep training my mom and dad - you know, things like that. Being a baby is so much fun as long as you get all the good stuff, lots of attention and love.

Elena Taylor
Hi, my name is Elena and I am 9 months old. A lot has happened since I was born at University Hospital, Bucharest. First of all I screamed like crazy, while my daddy made sure I wasn't mixed up with any other babies. Then I got revenge by keeping mummy awake all night long, a good trick that was to be repeated many times over. Most of the summer I was out and about, touring the cities and parks and doing my best to stop insubordinate behaviour like impromptu coffee stops and the like. If we come across any other little people I always try to stop and chat. During the summer my daddy goes away on courses with clients. This year mummy and me went too. I had a great time charging around in my pushchair, whilst mummy tried to stop everyone from kissing and hugging me.

Elena Taylor: ''My best friend is Holly Ö I can't wait until we can walk. We'll get up to all sorts of mischief together.''

I have my own special chair in the car, which is supposed to keep me safe. A good idea in the city traffic, but I can't see what's going on, which means I must be entertained. Fortunately mummy and daddy know a few nursery rhymes, something about a grand old duke and a weasel that goes pop.

I used to enjoy a long nights sleep until I got to 5 months old, and started teething. I am telling you these teeth are not worth the trouble. I'm just nodding off nicely and there they go moving around. Naturally I have to scream out. We babies go into deep sleep after only a few minutes so I soon drift off again, for an hour or two. It's a shame that you adults don't ñ tee hee. Personally I can't see what's wrong with milk and bit of mushed up apple anyway; it tastes great and saves on the cooking!

We have three cats and I am already trying to catch hold of their tails and whiskers, but they are too quick for me. They are such cowards though and are frightened of me. They are going to get a surprise when I can keep up with them!

My best friend is Holly. Her mum and dad are friends with my mum and dad. In fact her mum and dad were coming out of the maternity hospital as mine were going in. Holly was premature, but because she had bottle milk she is bigger than me, although I have just as much energy. I can't wait until we can walk. We'll get up to all sorts of mischief together.

Mara Constantinescu
I was born on a wonderful, sunny day. My parents were waiting for me impatiently and I wanted to reward them from the first possible moment with a smile and an excellent bill of health from the doctor. This means that from the first day of my life I proved I am a favourite. I am also very modest.

Living with parents is not bad so far. They overwhelm you with love and attention. Let me tell you one of the funniest stories that happened to me: when I was four months old, the doctors advised my mother to reduce the numbers of daily meals because he thought I might have problems with my stomach later if I eat too often. But he didn't say to cut down gradually over time ñ or at least, my mother didn't hear him say that. Eager to follow the doctor's advice and wanting to ensure that I would grow up to be a big strong girl, the next day my mom changed her diet drastically.

	Later that night, my stomach started to cramp and shout at me for food and there wasn't too much I could do, because, as you know, I am still a baby and can't help myself from the fridge. The only thing I could do was to cry and scream, and hope that my parents would rescue us (my stomach and me). Unfortunately we didn't get what we wanted; instead, all we got were medicines, pills and suppositories that didn't stop that starving feeling. I thought, 'Mom, I know you're trying hard, but you're not helping much.'
Mara Constantinescu: ''I really love parties, but you can forget about milk and all the other baby stuff!''	So I focused on my father, who was panicking. I was looking at him and crying, determined to make sure they would not sleep until I got something to eat!

Later that night, my stomach started to cramp and shout at me for food and there wasn't too much I could do, because, as you know, I am still a baby and can't help myself from the fridge. The only thing I could do was to cry and scream, and hope that my parents would rescue us (my stomach and me). Unfortunately we didn't get what we wanted; instead, all we got were medicines, pills and suppositories that didn't stop that starving feeling. I thought, 'Mom, I know you're trying hard, but you're not helping much.'

Mara Constantinescu: ''I really love parties, but you can forget about milk and all the other baby stuff!''

So I focused on my father, who was panicking. I was looking at him and crying, determined to make sure they would not sleep until I got something to eat!

Finally, I heard my father saying: ''Hey woman, did you feed the girl tonight?'' And ding! - a bell rang above my mom's head as she immediately realised that she had changed my meals too drastically. Approximately seven seconds passed before I had a bottle in my little hands again, becoming a happy baby once again and eventually kicking back for a good night's sleep.

Thanks Dad, I knew I could count on you. Doesn't this prove again that daughters have a very good communication with their fathers? (Guys, don't ever do this to me again, ok?)

Something I really love is parties. You can forget about milk and all the other baby stuff! Although everybody calls me ìthe little oneî and little ones don't have too much in common with parties, I'm proud to say that I have organised two big parties. All my close friends, who are more than thirty years older than me, had a lot of fun till 8.00 in the morning. I received many nice presents and their attention made me feel like a princess. I look forward to seeing them again at the next one. It's nice to know that even though I may be little, friends are around and I can count on them.

Aghe, tachi, bia, pitia were my first favourite words. Please don't ask me what they mean. This is my secret and while I have shared some things with you, I can't disclose everything, can I? I mean, I have to maintain some element of mystery, don't I?

Michael (aka Mikey, aka 'Mumble')
Gene Avery
When you're the small twin, life is a struggle. I'm not sure why I'm crying all the time. I definitely got the short end of things inside mommy, since compared to my brother I am the runt. I'm still outraged by that and I'm not afraid to spread a little of my discomfort around. I will show everyone I can scream the loudest for the longest. I get results because that big milk-filled rubber nipple appears frequently.

And because I demand more from life I am closing the gap between me and my brother. But at what price, I wonder? Sometimes I drink so fast and furious I get terrible gas pains that keep me clenched up like a ball. Other times I just throw up on daddy.

Mommy wanted us two twins to ëself-soothe' each other. Bollocks! The other kid just gets in my way and redirects valuable resources. I am me and I want attention. No swings, bouncy seats or sleeping by myself. No! If I'm not skin on skin with someone when I need to sleep, someone's going to hear about it.

On the plus side, I have to admit that the world is becoming slightly more interesting. I've got my parents and grandparents to look at. I will study them and use them to my advantage. I already see the facade cracking on daddy's face occasionally. Hmmm, perhaps he can serve a purpose, after all.

James (aka Jimmy, aka 'Jumble')
William Avery
Oh, the noise, noise, noise! Why can't that other kid just let me sleep! I love this life stuff. I've transitioned from a place where I was well-taken care (if a bit dark) to another place where all my needs are taken care of. I mean all I have to do is whimper and in comes the milk ñ it's great. I was 3.3 kilos starting out and I am already well past 5 kg ... I really don't understand the other kid's problem. Waaa, waaa, waaa! Me, I'm fat, happy and secure - what else is there?

Of course, I'm starting to understand that danger looms in this world. There's that giant kid Isabel that kisses me in front of mommy and daddy, but sometimes she has a funny look in her eye. I mean, she already hit both of us in the head once ëby accident.' Right. Well, I have to admit, most of the time she's OK, even if she likes to get on the Screamland Express with me and the other kid, and wants to be held by mommy just like us. But, I think I can charm her into my approach to life. But she's way more interested in her toys and playing in the yard to take too much notice. Let's hope it stays that way.

Anyway, I guess my parents are trying hard. They seem to be tired all the time. Daddy always has a big stupid grin on his face when he holds us, so maybe he's a bit slow on the uptake, or maybe he needs something to drink. I could suggest 150 ml of warm milk every four hours ñ that does the trick for me!